Call Sign February 2004 - Page 21 - SANTA’S DIAL-A-CAB SUCCESS!

Dial-a-Cab’s Santa Clause, Keith D’urso (M57), who for the past five years has been driving around London at Christmas time dressed as Santa Clause, has written to Call Sign from his home in Rovaniembi, Lapland (Rudolph doesn’t like Waltham Abbey!) to thank all the warm-hearted DaC drivers and staff who helped him smash his previous highest collection total! Call Sign’s December issue told why he does it and how Dial-a-Dream – the children’s charity that tries to make the wishes of terminally ill children come true - benefits. Santa – sorry, Keith – told us: "As you said in December’s Call Sign, last year’s total was £648 and I was hoping to get up to £700 this year. But I seriously under-estimated the generosity of the cab trade - especially the drivers on EC5. Just from drivers	SANTA’S DIAL-A-CAB SUCCESS!
	and staff alone, I collected a massive £810.40. I also made a collection at my local conservative club and they generously donated £172.24, making an amazingly terrific total of £982.64. All I can say is thank you all." Any funny stories? "Well," said Mike, "the funniest parts involved those things that didn’t happen! Quite a few passengers asked why I	was dressed as Santa – some donated and some didn’t, but wished me good luck. The funny part was those – mainly men - who totally ignored the fact that Father Christmas was driving them and with a British stiff upper lip, carried on as though it were a perfectly normal occurrence! Tom Whitbread and Bob Heath, who set up Dial-a-Dream in the late 1980’s, told Call Sign how delighted they were and how collections such as this one help to make what often turns out to be a child’s final wish, come true. "I could have told you before about the generosity of the London cab trade," said Tom, "they are just the world’s best when it comes to helping others."

FROM SOUTH LONDON TO THE SOUTH OF FRANCE
Former Dial-a-Cab driver Bob Woodford (P49) and his wife Janette recently bought a holiday home in the Herault region in Languedoc in the south of France, however, they liked it so much that they left their Dulwich home and moved en bloc permanently! Last issue’s Call Sign told how Bob had watched England play France in the ‘Patchamumu’ Sports Bar in Saint Genies de Fontedit. So nice did it sound that several subscribers have asked us to ask Bob for more info on his move. "Best move we ever made," said Bob, a cab driver for 17 years with many of those on DaC. "Having checked out the property situation in Spain previously, we decided that was too expensive and also too far. Here, there are 300 days of sunshine within 75 minutes of Stansted courtesy of Ryanair, who are ridiculously cheap." The Woodford’s ‘maison secondaire’ is situated just a 10 minutes drive from the ancient City of Beziers and just 20 minutes from the Mediterranean. It is ideally suited for a wonderful French holiday or a permanent or retirement home. Bob flies back regularly to drive his cab. "The scenery is delightful," said Bob, "it’s not too far from the Epinouse and Caroux mountains which are visible	*Veiw of Bob's Village*
	from all the sun-terraces in this lovely village. Keen cyclists have a choice of flat and steep terrain. Nearby is Lamalou-les-Bains with its hot spas, golf course and casino. Anglers can choose from the Herault and Orb rivers and the village is convenient for the famous Canal du Midi." Bob continued: "We are in Saint Genies de Fontedit. There is a baker, butcher, grocery store, newsagent, post office, hairdressers, church and of course, le café. Everywhere you look there are vineyards and the area is steeped in history and culture." So, how did Bob take the first step? Janette takes up the story… "Well, after one too many trips to Spain and the sight of all those beer monsters," joked Janette, "we came across HOUSE-HUNTERS, paid £195 for a so-called ‘familiarisation trip’ and on the final day of our break, bought a lovely 5-bedroom village house." "How much," asked Call Sign imagining a similar English country house at around £220,000? "£45,000," came the astonishing reply! Jan then continued: "On our arrival at Montpellier	Airport, the company picked up, put us up in a pretty little bed and breakfast and gave us 2 days of property viewing together with evening meals. Then on that fateful last day, we went back to view the property that we eventually bought, before spending some time sightseeing and shopping. It was well worth every penny of the £195!" Bob and Janette were so impressed with this stylish, cost-effective way of finding their French home that they have since sent two other couples to HOUSE-HUNTERS, both of whom have found their ideal properties. "It cuts out a lot of time-wasting," Bob continued, "so if anyone at DaC is interested, do yourself and the missus a favour and give HOUSE-HUNTERS a ring or drop them a line. Book a Ryanair flight to Montpellier before the end of the kipper season! My last trip back to London with Ryanair cost me around £20! My first cab job went to Croydon - which came to more!" HOUSE-HUNTERS can be contacted by phoning Charlie Trowers on 0033 467 36 31 99 or by emailing charles.trowers@tiscali.fr .